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March 26, 2009
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=========================== TODAY'S ARTICLE ==========================
Beyond the Mirror, by Phil Ware
When you look in the mirror, what do you see?
Ouch! What I see is the 10-20-30 syndrome: a guy who is 10 years older
than I imagined myself to be, 20 lbs. heavier than I thought myself to
be, and I have 30 fewer hair follicles than I had last week.
Most of us find what we lack, what we are not. We're trained to see our
blemishes, flaws, and imperfections. We're sensitive to our sags, bags,
and wrinkles. Advertisers, social pressures, and our own vanity make us
vulnerable to all sorts of products and sales pitches. We're too much,
too little, or not enough like whatever mythical standard we have set
for ourselves.
On an even more serious note, we feel much the same spiritually. We
focus on what we are not or what we have done or what we neglected to
do. We forget we are people that God shaped with care, intention, and
purpose from the moment of conception (Psalm 139:13-16). We lose sight
of the truth that God is at work in us (Philippians 2:13). We discount
the power of being God's special new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17), the
Father's artistic handiwork made to do something great for the Kingdom
(Ephesians 2:10).
How do we keep from glaring at what we are not in the mirror? How do we
keep our spiritual failures and shortcomings from swamping our
confidence in Christ? How do we settle ourselves in the great will of
God and find our space to live, thrive, and bring our Savior glory?
Jesus gave us two guiding principles and then gave us ways to hang on
to these two principles in our lives.
Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got
together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this
question: "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?"
Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and
with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and
greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your
neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these
two commandments"
(Matthew 22:34-40 TNIV).
Then Jesus taught us to pray in a way that connected these two great
principles into our daily routines:
[Jesus said] This, then, is how you should pray:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen
(Matthew 6:9-12).
Jesus teaches us to look beyond the person we see in the mirror. He
calls on us to pray a simple prayer each day that awakens our hearts to
our dependence upon and love for the incredible God of the universe. He
reminds us, however, that to honor God, we must be redemptively
involved in the lives of others. In other words, we must love God with
all that we are and live with our Father's character and compassion in
relationship to others.
Jesus teaches us to look beyond the person we see in the mirror.
Now it is so easy for us to reduce the life of Jesus to slogans and
formulas that sound clever and catchy. But, if we listen closely, we
hear these two themes over and over. From Jesus' teaching in the Sermon
on the Mount, notice these two:
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these
things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:33). So in
everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for
this sums up the Law and the Prophets (Matthew 7:12).
The apostle Paul takes up both of these two principles when he writes:
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who
love him [loving God], who have been called according to his purpose"
[sharing God's love with others] (Romans 8:28).
Then a little later in the same letter, he wrote:
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's
mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and
pleasing to God -- this is true worship. Do not conform to the
pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your
mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is
-- his good, pleasing and perfect will (Romans 12:1-2).
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be
devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves
(Romans 12:9-10).
Everything around us is going to scream for us to define ourselves by
externals -- by the flaws we see of ourselves in the mirror. The truth
is, however, that image is always going to disappoint us unless we have
our identities established in the two guiding truths of God: our love
for God and our love for His children.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
After studying the following make LIFE Group and discussion questions,
I'd love to get some of your responses on my blog
(http://www.thephilfiles.com).
* Compare the pigment of each person's skin in your group -- this is
politically incorrect because we are afraid to talk about race and
ethnicity; but as believers, we celebrate it! The more diversity in
your group, the better. It's also a reminder that it really isn't a
white or black or brown race, but we are "different shades of God's
creative grace" (Galatians 3:26-4:4; Psalm 139:13-16).
If there are not many shades in your group, why not?
If there are, what do you think that is saying about your
group?
Why is it so hard for us to talk about this subject in today's
world?
Why don't we celebrate diversity more?
Why did God place you in the situation (skin color, family of
origin, family of raising, church family, experiences) that he
did?
If we understand that God made us and gave us the experiences
in our lives to have us be a blessing to others (Genesis 12:1-3;
1 Peter 13:9; Romans 8:28-29), how does that change how you
view yourself?
* Several passages in Scripture remind us of the importance of both
celebrating the "skin" we're born in and also challenging us to
move beyond the limitations of our own "unique shade of God's
creative grace." What do you think these passages teach us about
how to both use our skin and our need to move beyond our skin?
John 1:14-18 (cf. John 3:16-17; John 20:21-22)
Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 2:38-39
Revelation 7:9-11
* How do all these passages help us speak to the nature of our real
family and ethnicity and what does this say about our purpose?
Now answer that question again after reading 1 Peter 2:9-10 &
Galatians 3:26-29
---------
(c) 2009 Phil Ware <phil@heartlight.org>. All rights reserved.
RELATED LINKS:
* The Jesus Vibe: Prayer
http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200708/20070806_prayer.html
* The Jesus Vibe: Servant
http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200707/20070730_servant.html
* The Jesus Vibe: The Shear
http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200708/20070820_theshear.html
* Southern Hills Church of Christ
http://www.southernhillschurch.org
This article can be found on the web at:
http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200903/20090326_beyondmirror.html
=========================== FEATURED PRODUCT =========================
EVERY MAN'S BATTLE: WINNING THE WAR ON SEXUAL TEMPTATION ONE VICTORY AT A TIME, by Stephen Arterburn, et. al.
In this compassionate brother-to-brother guide, the authors tackle
sexual temptation head-on, offering a practical battle plan for
men--married or single--who desire to live by God's standard.
http://shopping.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/link?257
Find more great books, CDs and videos at the Heartlight store! With
each purchase you make, you're helping to support Heartlight's
ministry. Thanks SO MUCH for your help!
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